Better

Monday was one of those classes where nothing was working how I wanted it to work. We were reviewing old tricks that needed polishing, as well as doing conditioning to improve existing tricks. The stuff we were focusing on is all stuff that I have never been great at, in large part because my body simply does not like it. My shoulders scream whenever I try the keyhole, and my back freaks every time I work on a fliptini. Still, I kept trying the fliptini, to keep working on conditioning the lift with straight legs. Didn’t stop me from being near tears for half of the class – it is so frustrating to want to be better, and know it is a long road, only to see the ways my body puts up a fight. I felt like shit for most of the class. I went back to working on some stuff on my own with moderate success – unfortunately, working on all of the conditioning and the tricks my body dislikes meant that most of my strength was gone by the time I got to my aerial conditioning. I barely made it through our free dances, too – I actually felt my left leg begin to give way at one point, which is a combination of an old injury from hiking that never quite healed, and the overall exhaustion from the class. I am paying for the conditioning today – my back has been screaming since I woke up, and it is clearly because I was working muscles that need to be developed. I think I hit a point of wondering what it is about my pole work that stands out, and therefore, I make the mistake of comparing myself to others – never helpful. So, it was an off night for me, possibly an off week. Happens. Hoping it isn’t another funk period/plateau. The last one went on for a couple of months, until I got strong enough to start getting the new tricks.

Thanks! It’s the start of conditioning to go aerial. If you have a spot, it might help you feel more comfortable trying it, but maybe start by getting inverted and working on getting the right hand position, then holding it for 5 to 10 second intervals, so you can get used to the position before you start to push off into the pike. Drea has a technique where we use one shin to push out into the pike, then line up our ankles on each side of the pole for grip, making sure they are parallel – we then hold it for a 5 count, then a 10 count, etc. It’s a conditioning process. I’m working on locking it so that I can go into an aerial pencil – it’s taking forever, though! There are so many little things to get right about it – the exact hand position and distance between my hands, looking up at my feet instead of down, keeping my ankles parallel, tilting my pelvis correctly, etc. 🙂 Takes a while!